The Faerie King
by Boogum
Summary: As a girl, Ginny had used to fantasise about meeting the Faerie King. This wasn't quite what she'd had in mind ...
1. Chapter 1

This was written for **idreamofdraco** in _**The DG Forum Fic Exchange - Summer 2018**_. It won the awards for Best Fluff Scene, Most Humorous, and Most Fangirly. I had planned to expand on it, and I still might add in a few extra scenes, but don't expect any drastic changes/additions. At the end of the day, I prefer to work on my currents WIPs rather than returning to completed stories.

* * *

Malfoy was drunk. Again.

"Take that, you bastard little steps." A few, unsteady footsteps. "Think you can trip me up. I'll show you how I—son of a cock wobbler's goat! Where'd that even come from?"

Ginny clamped her pillow over her ears and tried to block out the sound of her neighbour cursing and stumbling around outside. He'd obviously caught the Knight Bus home, which was something at least. One time he'd splinched himself trying to Apparate into his apartment and she'd been forced to help him. That had been a nightmare.

"Bloody wand," he slurred, followed by some crashing and banging. "Stop jumping away from me."

She gritted her teeth and counted the seconds. Malfoy continued grumbling until there was a particularly loud thunk, then silence.

Too much silence.

Ginny emerged from under her pillow and listened intently. It hadn't sounded like Malfoy had made it inside his apartment yet. Had the idiot fallen over and hurt himself? Was he currently unconscious and bleeding from the head?

"Ugh, fine," she muttered, thrusting the covers off and snatching her wand from the bedside table.

She'd just make sure he was alive and not about to die anytime soon. That was the decent thing to do as a human being, and Ginny was a decent human being.

She marched for the door and something furry darted past her feet, half-tripping her and making her stub her toe against the kitchen bench. Pain throbbed all through her toe. That bloody cat! It was lucky she didn't have any stairs in her apartment; she was quite certain Mab would have killed her by now.

Cursing and hopping on one foot, she finally unlocked the door and peered around the corridor. There was no sign of Malfoy. Mab, a black cat with big green eyes, escaped through the gap with a swish of her tail.

"Come back here!" Ginny hissed.

Mab ignored her and went to investigate a lumpy bundle of cloth. Oh, wait, that looked like silvery-blond hair emerging from a cloak. Bloody Malfoy. He'd fallen asleep near the stairwell.

She walked over and kicked him in the side. "Wake up."

He groaned and swatted at her leg. Ginny took this as a sign to give him another kick. Screw being gentle and using magic. This bastard didn't deserve such kindness. Besides, it was cold and she wanted to hurry up and get back to the warmth of her apartment.

"Wake up, Malfoy, or I really will leave you to freeze!"

This time he rolled over onto his back. His hair splayed around him and he blinked up at her through hazy grey eyes. "Orange."

"What?"

"Your hair." He pointed vaguely in the direction of her head. "It's so orange."

"Gee, I never noticed before."

He snickered to himself, still muttering about orange, and then blinked up at the ceiling. "I think I'll sleep here under the stars. So many stars."

"We're inside. There are no stars."

"You just can't see them, you blind, orange plebeian. Look!" He gestured at the ceiling. "Look at all the—oh, they're gone." His face scrunched and he draped his arm over his eyes. "Ugh, Weasley, tell the walls to stop moving. I don't like this."

Ginny face-palmed. "Why do you even drink when you can't hold your alcohol at all?" she muttered under her breath. "Though I'm beginning to wonder if alcohol was the only thing you've been imbibing."

Malfoy was too busy making all sorts of groans to hear her. He was such a child. Really, he was the worst. She didn't know why so many females seemed to fancy him.

"Can you stand or not?" she asked abruptly.

He didn't respond. It seemed he'd got sidetracked by Mab, who'd come up near his face. "Tickles," he grunted, trying to move his face away from the cat's whiskers.

Ginny sighed. Why was this her life?

"I could be asleep right now," she grumbled, stooping down to loop her arms around him and hoisting him up. "I could be enjoying a nice, beautiful, uninterrupted sleep. Instead, what am I doing?"

She glared at the blond, who was leaning far too heavily against her and now burrowed his face into the nook between her neck and shoulder. He made a sleepy sound and murmured that she smelt nice for a plebeian orange. Ginny would have face-palmed if she had spare hands.

"Go to sleep again and I'm gonna drop you," she warned.

"I'm awake," he assured her, except his voice was more slurred than ever.

"What was the occasion tonight anyway?" she asked, half-dragging him to his door.

Silence.

"Malfoy!"

He jerked as if he'd got a fright. "Awake. I'm awake."

She rolled her eyes and repeated the question. He explained it was Theodore's stag night. Blaise had organised everything.

"No wonder you're off your head," she muttered.

Malfoy emerged from his burrow to look at her. Their faces were very, very close. She could see the darker flecks of silver in his eyes and smell the alcohol on his breath. Ugh. It was like hugging a brewery. Still, the intense way he looked at her was new. It annoyed her that her cheeks warmed a little.

"Weasley," he said seriously.

"What?"

"Has anyone ever told you that you wear hideous pyjamas? Flannel and broomsticks? Are you twelve?"

"Oh, for the love of—"

"Wait, wait, wait!" He clung to her so she'd have to prise him off if she wanted to drop him; his self-preservation instincts must have warned him of her intention. "It was just an observation."

"Observation, my arse. And stop clinging."

She shoved at him to get him to loosen his grip, but Malfoy remained stuck to her like a starfish. A very heavy, very annoying starfish. A sigh escaped her lips.

"I swear this is the last time I help you," she grumbled, continuing the slow trek to his door. Mab frisked around near their feet. "Do you hear me, Malfoy? The last time."

He dared to make one of those sleepy sounds and snuggle more against her. "Mhmm," he breathed near her ear. "You're a good neighbour, Weasley."

Ginny huffed. Bastard wasn't even listening.

She used her wand to unlock and open his door, then nudged it open so she could lug him inside. Mab darted in first, almost tripping her up again. She muttered curses at the cat and muttered curses at the blond trying to crush her with his sleepy, drunken arse. A muttered " _Lumos_ " let light fill the room. Ginny froze. Even Mab had stopped.

The apartment was filled with misshapen potatoes that had sprouted limbs. They clung to the blinds, lounged on his chairs, walked all over his kitchen bench, rummaged in his cupboards. It was like an infestation.

"Malfoy," she said, giving him a nudge. "Why are there gnomes in your apartment?"

He snickered into her hair. "You high? Why would I—bloody hell!" He staggered back, half-dragging her with him as he took in the creatures. "There are gnomes in my apartment!"

"Told you."

"Well, get rid of them!"

Ginny's eyes flashed. "What am I, your pest control? How you do you even get garden gnomes in a city apartment?"

"Oi!" the closest gnome said, fixing its beady eyes on Ginny. "I'll have ye know we ain't no ordinary garden gnomes. We be gnomes of the Lady sent on a most 'portant mission and …"

The gnome kept blah blah blahing about why he and his potato buddies were better than ordinary gnomes. Ginny was too distracted by Malfoy's wriggling to pay attention to what the creature was saying. Malfoy, it seemed, wasn't even trying to listen. He was busy fumbling for his wand.

"I'll just blast the ugly buggers," he muttered, "and then—"

"That's not how you deal with gnomes!" she hissed. "You're supposed to swing them round and make them dizzy and then toss them …" She trailed off as she realised there was only the balcony to toss them over, which led to a bone-crushing drop. Oh.

"Weasley, my wand is putting up much resistance. You'll have to be the one to blast them."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Idiot. I just told you we can't—"

"And that's why ye be coming with us," the gnome, who had still been talking, concluded dramatically.

Malfoy and Ginny both swung back to face him. If it was a him. It was hard to tell. Gnomes didn't have distinguishing features and their voices were all gruff, though this one had a clump of what looked like dirt-encrusted hairs growing from its chin. Or maybe they were just sprouts.

"What?" Malfoy and Ginny exclaimed in unison.

The gnome flashed a row of grubby teeth and punched his fist to the air. "Boble-ho!"

Ginny wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean, but it had quite the effect on the rest of the gnomes. They charged like an army of potatoes and cried "Boble-ho!" as they swarmed all over her and Malfoy. It was so unexpected and overwhelming that her wand was gone in seconds; the little bastards had snatched it. Even Mab wasn't spared. The cat hissed, fur sticking up, and swatted with her claws at anything that got close.

"Get off me!" Ginny roared, flapping her gnome-laden arms in an attempt to dislodge them and also get rid of the one dangling from her hair. Something struck her in the face, making clouds of pink dust billow everywhere. Then she just coughed.

"Ya-ha, down ye go!" Sprouty Beard cackled.

And, indeed, down she went. The little gnomes caught her before she could actually hit the ground, which would have been a nice gesture if she wasn't now paralysed from head to foot. She couldn't move an inch. A glance to her right revealed Mab and Malfoy were in the same predicament.

"Boble-ho!" Sprouty Beard exclaimed, punching his fist into the air again.

"W-wait," Ginny stammered, even as she found herself being carried towards the balcony. "Stop!"

It was like everything in her stomach knotted and plummeted. The gnomes were going to toss her over. Even her cat was coming. They were all going to die. This was all bloody Malfoy's fault!

"Do something!" she yelled at the blond.

Malfoy's eyes were shut and he was making groaning noises again. Ugh. That useless drunk.

They passed through the sliding glass door and moved out onto the balcony. Snowflakes were falling from the sky. A particularly globby one got in Ginny's eye, making her curse even more. Of course she just had to get snow in her eye. She willed her paralysed limbs to move, but nothing responded. This was it. This was the end.

This was so utterly, utterly humiliating.

"You better hope I never find you on the other side," Ginny growled at Malfoy. "I'm going to make your afterlife a personal hell."

A groan was all she got in response. Mab made unhappy cat yowls.

The gnomes propped each other up against the edge of the balcony to make potato-looking ladders. Then Ginny, Malfoy and Mab were passed up and over with a cheery "Heave-ho". The ground rushed towards her. Ginny screamed. Malfoy turned green. Mab made even louder yowls.

She squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself for impact.

It never came.

Warmth passed over her. Ginny frowned and dared to risk opening one eye. There was no snow. There were no buildings or streetlamps or anything. She wasn't even falling at a rapid rate now but drifted gently like a leaf before landing on a stretch of grass. It was lush and green and tickled her skin. Trees and wild flowers surrounded the clearing. The sky above was honey-gold and painted everything in a warm, buttery light.

Her heart fluttered a little. This was definitely not London.

Malfoy and Mab landed beside her on the grass. The army of gnomes followed a moment later. She tried wriggling but found that she still couldn't move.

"Are we dead?" Ginny asked.

Sprouty Beard laughed. "She asks if we be dead."

The other gnomes chortled as if she'd told the funniest joke ever created. One of them even slapped its spindly leg. Ginny decided she really hated gnomes.

"Ye not dead, human thing. Ye be in the Faerie Kingdom."

Ginny blinked. "The what?"

"The Faerie Kingdom."

" _It's neither here nor there but it exists everywhere."_

The words from her mum's stories came back to her in a rush. Her heart fluttered now for a different reason. Ginny had been raised on stories about the Faerie Kingdom. She'd loved them as a child—all the strange creatures and the even stranger magic. It was a special place that didn't follow the normal rules. But those had just been stories. This place wasn't meant to be real.

"You're—you're kidding, right?" she said.

"Nope," one of the other gnomes said. "Ye be really in the Faerie Kingdom."

"But why? Why bring us here?"

"Our mission was to find the Faerie King," Sprouty Beard explained. "Mind, we was only s'posed to bring him back with us."

"Faerie … King?" Her gaze travelled to the blond, who'd ended up vomiting on himself and was now groaning because he couldn't wipe it off. Her nose scrunched in distaste. "Don't tell me—"

"Aye. That be the Faerie King."

Malfoy groaned again. Ginny blinked. If the gnomes were to be believed, the handsome, charming king she'd had a crush on as a young girl—the same who was supposed to be so perfect and lovely—was just the selfish prick who lived next door to her. A man who fell asleep in corridors because he was too drunk to unlock his door and didn't know how to open his mouth without being insulting.

"You're kidding, right?" she repeated flatly, looking back at the gnome.

Sprouty Beard flashed his grubby-teethed grin. "Nope. We gnomes be very good finders."

"Great." Ginny sighed and resigned herself to being carried as the gnomes picked her up again. "Just great."

* * *

 **Jessica's Prompt (2)**

 **Basic premise:** When Ginny was a child, her mother told her stories about the land of the fae and its faerie king. Little did Ginny know that the stories were true. (This can be as AU or as allegorical as you'd like! If you don't fancy a literal interpretation, feel free to just use this as a jumping off point.)

 **Must haves:** A happy ending.

 **No-no's:** Cheating. I do not like the following nicknames: Ferret, Weaselette, Mione. No rape/non-con sex.

 **Rating range:** Any.

 **Bonus points:** If Draco is the faerie king. Or Ginny is secretly fae royalty. If you go the non-literal route, if one of Molly's faerie tales is interwoven with the story. A mystical/faerie tale atmosphere.


	2. Chapter 2

"What the hell?"

The voice was hoarse, pained and made Ginny smile a bit maliciously. Malfoy had woken up. It was also obvious he had a hangover. His expression had "kill me now" written all over it. His hair was sticking up everywhere and his eyes were bleary and bloodshot. A bit of morning stubble was showing.

"G'morning, Faerie King," one of the gnomes greeted.

Malfoy stared at the gnome for a good few seconds before he glanced back at Ginny. "What is this?"

"What is what?"

"Why are there gnomes everywhere? And—ugh." He pulled a face and brought a hand up to his nose. "Something stinks."

"That would be you," Ginny said. "You vomited on yourself. Remember?"

Malfoy looked even more pained. He glanced at his shoulder and the front of his robe, which still had traces of dried vomit. Then he just groaned and covered his face with his hands. "Why?" He sounded like he was on his last tether. "Why am I here? Why the hell am I surrounded by gnomes and—" he lowered his hands and peered at the dirt, big roots, and the colourful fungi sprouting up everywhere. "Are we underground? Are we actually underground right now?"

"Apparently, gnomes aren't good over long distances. They wanted to rest and chose this hollow beneath a tree." She smiled. "By the way, there's lots of weird insects, so you might wanna keep an eye out unless you want them crawling all over you. They kept doing that to me while I was trying to sleep. 'Try' being the key word. I mean, I was stuck all cramped next to your vomit-stinking arse."

He pinched the bridge of his nose with his forefinger and thumb. "Weasley, I don't care if the insects can talk and like to fly on giant peaches. Just tell me why I'm here."

"You mean you don't remember? But, Malfoy, this is your fault."

"What?"

Ginny's smile widened. "You heard the gnome. You're the Faerie King. Or so they think." She lost her false brightness and eyed him with distaste. "I still have my doubts."

The blond stared at her blankly. He glanced at the gnomes, then at her, then at the gnomes, then back at her. "They think I'm some fae royalty?"

"So they claim. That's why we got brought here to the Faerie Kingdom. Even my cat came along for the ride." She gestured up at Mab, who was perched on one of the higher roots and glared down at everyone like an assassin plotting her next kill.

Malfoy laughed. Not a small snicker, but _laughed_. He laughed until he was wincing and making more of those feeble groans. "This is insane," he said, once he'd got over his wincing fit. He staggered to his feet. "I'm leaving."

Ginny watched him fish around in his pockets. He paused, blinked a few times, went back to fishing in his pockets.

"Problem?" she queried.

"Where's my wand?"

"Currently, both our wands are in merry old London, far from our reach."

Malfoy didn't look as if he wanted to laugh now. His mouth was a sour twist of lemon and other bitter things. "You mean we're stuck here with these crazy gnomes?"

"Pretty much."

He swore. Multiple times.

"Sucks, doesn't it?" she observed in a neutral tone.

His eyes narrowed. "You're being awfully calm about this."

"Do I seem calm?" The unnerving smile returned. "Well, when I'm not getting what little enjoyment I can from seeing you hungover and frustrated, I start thinking about how I wouldn't even be here if I'd just stayed in bed instead of helping your useless, drunk arse. Then I just want to strangle you."

"Strangling? Bit extreme, don't you think?"

"We're in the Faerie Kingdom!" Ginny suddenly exploded, springing to her feet. "Do you know what that means? Do you?"

Malfoy raised his eyebrow. "Don't tell me you actually believe all that Faerie Kingdom nonsense."

Before she could respond, Sprouty Beard came over and told them it was time to keep travelling. They had a deadline to meet.

"Forget it," Malfoy said bluntly. "I'm not following you ugly little things anywhere. The only place I'm going is home."

"But this be yer home," one gnome pointed out.

Malfoy stared at the creature in a pained way. "I beg your pardon?"

"Ye be the Faerie King. Ye belong with us here."

A vein twitched in Malfoy's temple. "Do I look like a bloody faerie to you? Do I look like I'd ever, _ever_ have anything to do with grubby potato men like you? I'll have you know my parents are both from the finest wizarding families in the magical world and …"

The rant went on forever. Malfoy was so offended. He wouldn't shut up about his lineage and how he was a very human wizard and how he didn't care if they wanted to name him the emperor of their demented fantasy kingdom, because he wasn't having any of it. He just kept ranting on and on and on.

"For Merlin's sake, Malfoy!" Ginny cut in, rolling her eyes. "I think they get the picture. I think the whole universe gets the picture."

"Aye, we get it," Sprouty Beard said with a nod. "The Faerie King hasn't accepted who he be yet."

"Are you kidding me?" Malfoy exclaimed. "I say all that and _that's_ your response? Do you even have ears?"

It was a fair question, in truth. The gnomes were so knobbly and misshapen that it was hard to tell what were supposed to be ears.

Sprouty Beard raised his sprouty chin. "Ye be the one not listening. Ain't nothing in this world can change ye be the Faerie King. We gnomes _know_."

Malfoy fumed at the creature for a long moment before turning to Ginny. "Get this thing away from me before I kill it."

He actually looked serious. Maybe it was the hangover. Maybe it was because the gnomes had dared to claim him as their king, which seemed to be an insult to his overblown sense of superiority. Either way, Malfoy was in no mood to play friendly with the gnome kidnappers. Ginny repressed a sigh. She had been tempted to remind him that she wasn't his pest control and that he should fix his own messes, but it seemed the best course of action for all their sakes was to smooth his ruffled feathers.

"Easy there." She placed her hand on his shoulder to make him relax. Malfoy was so rigid it looked like he might snap. "I get you're frustrated, but we'll be here all day if you keep arguing about this. Let's just follow the gnomes for now and—"

"No way." He stepped back from her touch. "Either these hellmites take me back to London or I'm not budging another inch." Then he sat down on the ground, folded his arms, and glared at everyone through his bloodshot eyes. He had might as well have been a toddler about to throw a tantrum in the middle of a supermarket aisle.

"Are you actually doing this right now?" Ginny demanded.

Malfoy's lower lip jutted. "My terms are simple."

She rolled her eyes. Merlin, he really was a spoilt brat.

"Don't wanna move, eh?" Sprouty Beard said.

Malfoy just glowered.

Ginny could guess where this was heading. That idiot was going to get himself paralysed with the pink dust again, and then the gnomes would have to carry him and just get tired again, and then she was never going to get anywhere. Once more, she felt obliged to step in.

"Get off the ground," she said in exasperation. "I think the gnomes want to take us to some lady." She glanced at Sprouty Beard. "Right?"

"Aye, the Lady of the Forest."

"There you go," Ginny said. "If the stories are true, this lady can do some serious magic. I bet once she realises you're not the Faerie King, she'll send us back to London."

Malfoy pursed his lips. "I'm going to ignore the fact you're actually going along with this faerie rubbish. You realise it's far more likely she's some crazy witch with a gnome cult."

"Regardless, she can probably do magic."

He sighed and got to his feet. "Fine, but if we end up locked in a cellar and forced to put lotion on our bodies so the crazy lady can skin us and make a set of clothes out of our lotion-y soft skin, let it be known here and now that I thought following the gnomes was a terrible idea."

Everyone stared at him.

"What?" he said.

"That has got to be one of the strangest things you've come out with," Ginny observed, scrunching her nose. "But if that happens, I promise I'll let you say 'I told you so' as much as you like."

He seemed appeased by this and then looked around the hollowed out nook of dirt, fungi and insects. "This place is disgusting. Let's leave now."

One of the gnomes scratched its cheek. "Eh, I don't get it. First he wants to stay here and not budge an inch, now he wants to hurry and leave."

"Don't question his logic," Ginny advised. "Malfoy is a breed of his own. You'll hurt your brain trying."

"I heard that, Weasley."

She smiled. "Good. I meant it."

He scowled but did not deign her with a response. Probably because he was too hungover to think of anything good.

Most of the gnomes toddled out of the hollow with Malfoy. Ginny had to coax Mab down from the assassin perch before she could follow, and some of the gnomes were kind enough to try helping. It took some time (and many scratches), but in the end Ginny was holding her cat and they were moving again.

The trek through the forest was hardly enjoyable. Moving did not seem to be conducive to Malfoy's hangover or his mood. Ginny almost missed drunk Malfoy. Drunk Malfoy was a useless idiot who got clingy, whiney and affectionate in his own insulting way, but sober Malfoy was just plain horrible. He was grumpy, he was rude, he complained about every little thing.

"Do ye think the Lady will mind if we knock 'em out?" one of the gnomes said, jerking his knobbly head at the blond.

"We can't knock out the king," another responded.

"What about a gag then? Could we put a gag on 'em?"

"No."

Ginny moved closer to the duo. "Hey, you wanna put a gag on him, I'll help."

Malfoy paused in his grumbling to glare at them. "You realise I can still hear you. I do have ears."

"So do we," she retorted. "Trust me, we're all lamenting that we can't tune out your obnoxious voice."

"The servant be right," Sprouty Beard said from the front of the pack. "Yer Majesty be a right turnip mouth."

"Servant?" Ginny echoed at the same time Malfoy pulled a face and said turnip mouth. They glanced at each other, then back at the leader of the gnomes. "What?"

"A turnip mouth be a turnip mouth," the gnome who'd wanted to knock out Malfoy explained. "It's obvious, ain't it?"

"Sure." The blond's tone was drier than a desert. "I feel so informed after that earth-shattering revelation."

"Eh, how do human things explain it … Ah! It's like a person who makes ye want to punch 'em the moment they open their mouth."

The gnomes all nodded sagely. Ginny would have cackled, especially since Malfoy's offended expression was pure magic, but she was too caught up in being offended herself. There was something she needed to make clear.

"Never mind that," she said. "What do you mean by servant?"

"Don't ye be the Faerie King's servant?" Sprouty Beard asked.

Angry splotches coloured her cheeks. "No!"

Now Malfoy snickered and his bloodshot eyes glinted with unsuppressed delight. "Oh, this is good. Even the crazy gnomes read your social status like an open book."

"Shut up, turnip mouth."

He scowled.

"Well, if ye don't be his servant, who be ye to our king?" Sprouty Beard asked.

Ginny's face heated even more. Just what were these potato bastards implying? "I'm his neighbour!"

"Eh? Neighbour?"

There were many shrugs, whisperings and chin scratching. To her disgust, the gnomes still concluded that she was his servant. Bloody gnomes.

The odd group continued deeper into the forest. A prickle started down Ginny's spine, raising the hairs on her arms and neck. Even Mab tensed in her arms. It felt like they were being watched by a hundred eyes. Then the leaves started rustling all at once, which was creepy since there was no wind.

Malfoy froze, pale as chalk. "What?" he said in a strangled voice.

Ginny raised her brows questioningly at him. Sure, the forest was a little unsettling, but that was no reason to look as if he'd been told the best ice cream shop in Diagon Alley had closed down for good. What an overreaction.

"Something wrong, Faerie King?" one of the gnomes asked.

"The trees." He swallowed and licked his lips, still that sickly white. "The trees are …"

"The trees are what?" Ginny said when he showed no sign of finishing his sentence.

Malfoy held a hand to his head. He looked dazed and lost, all big eyes and childlike vulnerability. Suddenly, he latched onto her shoulders. "Weasley, tell me I'm drunk."

"You know you're not drunk. You're hungover."

"Then tell me the gnomes fed me a weird mushroom or something."

She sighed and shifted her hold on Mab. "What's wrong?"

"The trees are talking. I can hear them."

He said this practically in a whisper, like he knew it was insane and didn't want anyone else to overhear. No wonder he'd frozen up and looked all horrified. Even in the wizarding world, trees did not talk.

Ginny's brow creased as she thought of her mum's stories. In the tales, the Faerie King had been known for being able to communicate with the land and animals. Her eyes widened and she looked up at the blond. Was it possible that he really was the Faerie King? She'd been having some serious doubts, but now …

"What are they saying?" she asked.

"Who cares what they're saying? I can bloody hear trees talking! That is not okay, Weasley!"

"Oh, stop being so dramatic and just tell me. I'm curious."

He jutted his lower lip and folded his arms. "Don't know why you're so interested. It's just boring stuff. Most of them are complaining because they want more sunlight. One of them keeps going on about all the bird shit on its branches. Some are saying they're thirsty, and there's one that keeps shouting at me and telling me it has a great knock, knock joke."

Ginny's mouth twitched. "It sounds like they're just happy to see you."

"What?"

Her smile widened. "Malfoy, if you really are the Faerie King, you're basically like these trees' dad. They're telling you all their concerns and trying to share things with you just like kids do with their parents."

He pulled a face. "I don't want trees for children. I don't want to hear trees talking period."

"Tough luck if you are the Faerie King. It's all part of the parcel."

"Well, I don't want the parcel. Anyway, you're all nutters if you think this Faerie King rubbish is true. I think I'd know if I was fae royalty."

"Then how do you explain the fact you can understand tree language?"

"I'm drunk or high or bloody going insane. Take your pick."

He marched ahead on the words, shoulders hunched and his gait oddly jerky. It struck her that he was getting rather emotional about this whole Faerie King business. That wasn't like him. Malfoy could be whiney, overly sensitive about wounds to his pride, and just plain grumpy at times, but the way he was behaving now was different. More defensive. More vulnerable.

"Hurry it up, servant!" Sprouty Beard called to her.

She shot a glare at the gnome, forgetting all about Malfoy's issues in favour of indulging in less than polite thoughts about her kidnappers. Somehow it seemed typical that she would be labelled the servant while Malfoy got royalty. More humiliating was the later discovery that the gnomes thought Mab was the blond's personal guard and companion.

"Mab is my pet cat!" she exclaimed in irritation.

"Aye, whatever ye say, servant."

Ginny closed her eyes and counted to ten. Calming rituals were much needed now.

It wasn't long before they came across the fairies. The little winged creatures were racing through the trees like glowing balls of light. A particularly shiny one with long, golden hair zipped down to block Sprouty Beard's path.

"Halt, tunnel cretins!" she cried, brandishing a … was that an acorn?

"Outta the way, wingfluff!" Sprouty retorted.

"We shan't!" the fairy said, holding her chin high. "This is as far as thou and thy hoard of dirt-rummaging thieves shalt go!"

"We ain't be no thieves!" another gnome cried.

"Thou darest lie to the great Cressinda? I know thou stolest the special fairy dust! I know thou didst try to—" Her eyes rested on Malfoy and then seemed to bug right out of her pretty, glowing head. "Merciful owl saints, is that unkempt man _him_?"

"Ye forgot yer doth and eths."

She threw a very fairy-like scowl at Sprouty Beard. Then she cleared her throat. "Just answereth me, gnome. Doth that man be the king?"

"Aye." Sprouty sounded rather smug. "We got there before ye, wingfluff. Now outta the way! The Lady be waiting for us."

Cressinda and her troop of fairies did not move. It seemed they felt they should be the ones to bring the Faerie King to the Lady, unkempt and hungover or not. A heated exchange of insults started. The fairies were particularly fond of telling the gnomes to "pisseth off" and said the gnomes were born from the ugliness mushed under a rock. The gnomes, in turn, said the fairies were no better than Christmas decorations and were just as empty-headed. The fairies were not impressed. Much more thous and thines were tossed around.

"What's with the way those fairies speak?" Ginny asked, glancing down at the gnome near her foot.

The potato-looking creature heaved a sigh and pressed its spindly little hand to its forehead. "One of 'em discovered something called Shakespeare in the Other World. They be talking like this ever since. Right headache, they be."

Malfoy seemed to agree. The vein on his forehead was doing a lot of twitching. "Alright, everyone shut up!" he snapped.

It was as if a mass _Silencio_ had been cast. The fairies and gnomes all stared at him as if frozen. A single acorn dropped from a fairy's hand and landed on a gnome's head. The small ow sounded unnaturally loud.

Cressinda cleared her throat and fluttered forward on gossamer wings. "Your Majesty, forgiveth us for our rudeness." She lowered into a bow. "We simply wisheth for thee to be taken to the Lady as befitteth one of thine station, so if thou wildst—"

"Can't you just speak normally?" he asked.

Her face brimmed with pink. "Oh, erm—"

Sprouty Beard snorted. "That's what ye get for trying to act all lofty and 'portant."

"No one asked for thy opinion, Nobkin!"

Now it was Ginny who snorted. All the gnomes looked at her in affront, as if they couldn't believe she had betrayed them to laugh at something Cressinda the speaker of thees and thous had said.

"Sorry," Ginny muttered, biting down on her lip to suppress giggles. "It's just, um, your name is Nobkin?"

"Aye."

Malfoy raised his eyebrow. "So do people call you Nob for short?"

Ginny's shoulders shook. Malfoy's eyes were doing that glinty thing where he was secretly laughing despite his flat expression. It was a sight that had always been her composure's downfall, even at Hogwarts—at least when his teasing hadn't been aimed at her. It only got worse when Sprouty Beard, or Nobkin, said that yes, sometimes people did call him Nob for short.

"Gotta problem with that?" Nobkin demanded.

"No," Malfoy said innocently. "I'm sure you make a very distinguished Nob."

That was it for Ginny. She burst out laughing, which also allowed Mab to wriggle free of her loosened grip. Chaos was unleashed. Mab had been eyeing the fairies for some time with big, round eyes and now the cat started leaping about and swatting at them, trying to catch them. The gnomes thought this was hilarious, but the fairies were not so impressed.

"Mab, stop!" Ginny cried.

"Get thee hence, fur demon!" one fairy screamed, just missing being snagged by claws.

Another fairy was crouching on a high branch and clutching his ears, wailing over and over how he hated cats. Some of the fairies were sobbing because their silk clothes had got torn. Cressinda and a few others were pelting Mab with acorns and twigs.

"Enough!" Malfoy bellowed.

Again, everyone froze. Even Mab stopped terrorising a fairy to look at him. Malfoy, for his part, just pinched the bridge of his nose. He was looking rather pale again and there were was no more glinty humour in his eyes.

"I don't want to hear any more shrieking, any more fighting, or any more anything," he gritted out in a low voice. "Just stop."

"But Your Majesty—"

He glared at Cressinda. "I have a hangover. I should be in my bed right now, but I'm stuck here with all of you. I am _not_ in a good mood."

"But—"

"Look, it seems you're not getting the picture, so maybe you'll understand this: either shutteth up or pisseth off!"

The fairies let out one unified gasp of offence. Ginny was trying to stifle snickers again and the gnomes weren't even hiding their grins.

"Serves you wingfluffs right," one gnome muttered.

"You shut up as well," Malfoy snapped.

There was a muffled giggle from a smaller group of gnomes. "Wankero got in trouble."

Ginny choked on phlegm. "Wankero?"

"Aye, that be me name," Wankero responded. "But ye can call me Wanker." He shrugged. "Or just Wank."

"Oh my Merlin," Ginny breathed, lips trembling as she struggled not to fall into a laughing fit.

Malfoy stared at the gnome, then over to Nobkin. "Wank and Nob? Did your parents hate you or something?"

"Eh?" the gnomes said in unison.

The blond ignored them and returned his attention to the fairies. He said he didn't give a damn who took him to this Lady of the Forest. All he wanted was for people to not shriek around him and a way to return to London. He then glowered at Mab and told the cat to stop being a pain in the arse or it could pisseth off as well. Mab twitched her ears and flicked her tail.

"No," Malfoy said in some alarm, all the colour draining from his face.

Ginny blinked. "What?"

"Now the bloody cat is talking to me."

Cressinda smoothed her dress. "Well, of course. Since thee hast returned, all thine powers hath"—she noticed his narrowing eyes and quickly backtracked—"er, I mean, coming back here has reawakened your powers. You'll find they'll only get stronger as you get closer to the heart of the kingdom."

If it was possible, Malfoy went even paler. He seemed to struggle with himself for a moment before he declared that he didn't want to hear anything about this king nonsense any more. The fairies and gnomes exchanged glances. They agreed to be silent so long as Malfoy continued to follow them back to the Lady.

"Fine," he snapped. "Let's just hurry."

Ginny once more picked up Mab and followed at a slower pace. Malfoy might still be stubbornly claiming he was just inebriated and everyone else was crazy, but she felt the truth resonate in her bones. That selfish git really was the Faerie King and it seemed they really were in the Faerie Kingdom. Sooner or later, he'd have to accept it as well.

* * *

Some fictional allusions were featured in this chapter. The two main ones were _James and the Giant Peach_ and _Silence of the Lambs_. "Pisseth off" was less obvious, but was inspired by the robot Shakespeare play in _NieR: Automata._ (For the curious, "Pisseth off, Romeo" is the proper quote.)


	3. Chapter 3

"Here we be," Nobkin said, gesturing to the path ahead, which was formed by trees lining either side and arching overhead in golden leaves.

"You mean here we are," Cressinda corrected.

"Don't ye even start, wingfluff. Just 'cause ye got told off for ye thees and thous."

She sniffed haughtily. "I'm just saying thou—you could at least try to speak more properly."

"And I'm just saying I don't care." Nobkin turned to Malfoy and Ginny. "We take this path and we _be_ at the palace. There the Lady _be_ waiting."

Cressinda rolled her eyes and fluttered ahead, muttering unflattering things about gnomes. Malfoy made no move to step forward.

Ginny came to stand next to him and nudged him lightly in the arm. "Alright?"

He'd got quieter the deeper they'd gone into the forest. That had been more alarming than she'd cared to admit. Malfoy was never quiet. He was a grumbling, whining, insulting man. Seeing him like this was like looking at a hedgehog without its spines. It was just weird.

"Malfoy?" she prompted.

His brow creased. "I feel like I've been here before."

"Because ye have," Nobkin said. "This be the heart of the land. This be ye home."

Ginny waited for the snarling denial that was his typical response, but Malfoy only stared around him with an unreadable expression. He walked to the closest tree and placed his hand on the ancient trunk. The leaves rustled above him and the branches almost seemed to sway. It was a graceful dance, a conversation of whispers and wood.

"What's it saying?" she asked.

"That it's glad I'm here," Malfoy said with an odd twist to his lips. "It's what they're all saying. They say the forest hasn't been the same without me."

"The trees aren't wrong."

Ginny turned to look at the fairy hovering near Malfoy's shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"The Lady will explain. Now come, she waits."

Malfoy hesitated before following the gnomes and fairies. Ginny stuck to his side, still holding Mab in her arms.

"You've accepted it, then?" she asked after a moment. "Being the Faerie King, I mean."

He glanced at his hands. "No. I don't want to accept it at all. It's just … this place feels so familiar. It's like something in me remembers speaking with these trees long ago." His gaze met hers and for the first time she noticed how beautiful his eyes were for their silvery colour, even bloodshot as they were now. "What am I supposed to think? I suddenly have these weird abilities and these annoying little creatures keep calling me their king."

She quirked her eyebrow a bit teasingly. "You know, I thought you'd be more pleased to find out you could be royalty. You always did like lording over people."

"This is different. Nothing about this is okay."

"Why? The Faerie King is described as being really powerful in the stories." Her lips pursed. "Better than being mistaken for a servant."

"This isn't a story, Weasley. If these creatures aren't lying, if I am the Faerie King, then what—who even is Draco Malfoy? My parents, my home. How does everything fit together?"

Her breath caught. Oh. Now it made sense why he'd gone on that huge rant about his lineage and had looked all vulnerable. She felt like an idiot for not realising sooner.

"Hey, don't worry about it so much," she advised. "I'm sure there's a good explanation for everything."

Mab meowed.

Malfoy scrunched his nose at the cat. "No one asked you."

"What did Mab say?"

"That she doesn't care either way so long as she gets sardines and chicken."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Why doesn't that surprise me? All this cat cares about is food."

Mab's input seemed to put an end to Malfoy's confiding mood. He continued along the path without another word, leaving Ginny to catch up. Creatures, big and small, popped up from the foliage and peered at them with curious eyes. She saw brownies, hairy little hobgoblins, nymphs of all shades. All around them, a whisper that the king had returned started up so that the forest hummed with the words.

Ginny glanced at the blond, wondering how he was handling this development. His gait was stiff and his brow furrowed. She had an odd urge to touch his arm or at least let him know that she was there at his side. Then she realised she was actually worried about the git—not in the "Oh dear, he's drunk and hurt himself" way, as any decent human would feel, but in the "Oh, I hope he's not troubled; let me hug him and make it all better" way. Ugh. Being in this place must have done something to her head. Maybe she was the one who had been fed funky mushrooms.

The path of trees opened up to a glade carpeted in wild flowers. Just like that, Ginny was distracted from her concern for Malfoy. She forgot how to move or even breathe. The glade was exactly as it had been depicted in the stories: the banquet table, now bare of food, and the fairies that flew through the air like little stars. Two thrones of entwined wood and honeysuckle sat empty at the far end, waiting for their king and queen. Waiting for night to come. Only then would the fae gather so the music, dancing and festivities could begin.

"I can't believe it," she murmured.

This was the glade where princesses and princes had worn out their dancing shoes, where young women and men had been enchanted by the unearthly beauty of the fae. She felt the old thrill of her childhood sing in her blood.

"What?" Malfoy said, glancing over his shoulder at her.

She shook her head. "Nothing."

It wasn't like he would appreciate her awe in his current mood.

They passed the empty thrones and walked down a path of bluebells until they came to what she knew had to be the home of the Faerie King. Ginny could only look around her in wonder. All the stories in the world could not do justice to actually seeing the heart of the kingdom with her own eyes. The pathways and structures seemed to have been shaped by the land itself. Ancient branches and iridescent platforms curved and twisted to form bridges and paths all the way up the massive tree trunks. There were arches, pavilions and nook-like rooms etched with intricate carvings. Climbing flowers wrapped around latticed wood and offered a bouquet of scents.

"Wow," she breathed.

It was like a dream. Everything was open to nature and seemed to glow with the warm, buttery light that filtered through the leaves. Ginny could have stayed there staring at it forever and would have been content.

Wankero poked her in the leg. "This way, servant."

She blinked and followed the others up a path of shimmering steps that branched off to fountains and more pavilions. Shining at the top was a courtyard and a building that was a star in its own right, all silvery light and wood. Smaller trees bearing crystal-like fruit rimmed the courtyard. Just staring at them filled Ginny with an urge to pluck one and sink her teeth in for a taste.

"Don't."

It took her a second to realise she'd let go of Mab and that Malfoy was holding her wrist. Her fingers were still outstretched towards the fruit. Somehow, she'd walked right over to one of the trees without even noticing. She blinked and looked up into his eyes. His gaze seemed to ground her in a way nothing else could in this land, reminding her that humans should never eat anything from the Faerie Kingdom, let alone glowing fruit.

"How did you know?" she asked.

He released her wrist. "Know what?"

"That I wouldn't be able to leave if I ate the fruit. I didn't think you were familiar with the stories."

Malfoy's brow creased. "I—I don't know how I knew. I just did."

The vulnerability of the confession made her bite her lip. Her git of a neighbour wasn't supposed to look like this. He wasn't supposed to sound like this. She wanted him to smirk all cockily again and look at her with that glinty look in his eyes, waiting for her to share in his dumb jokes. Heck, she'd even take him calling her a plebeian orange if it would just wipe that confused, lost look from his face.

Instincts that had made her take care of him when he was drunk had her reaching for him again now. "Hey," she said softly, "if you—"

"Welcome home, my king."

Ginny quickly let her hand drop back to her side. She turned to see a woman step out from the building, though such a common label as "woman" didn't seem fitting. The newcomer was beyond beautiful. Her skin was warm russet and covered only by ivy and the cloak of her hair, which reached all the way to her ankles and seemed to capture the colours of autumn. Velvety antlers extended from her head like a stag's, dotted with small flowers. Her eyes were moss-green flecked with amber. Looking at her was like looking at forests and enticement shaped into a woman.

The gnomes and fairies dipped their heads to her in respect. "Lady Aisling," they murmured.

"Wait, you're the Lady of the Forest?" Ginny blurted. From the stories, she'd been expecting a bigger version of Cressinda: all pale skin, flowing blonde hair and a dress made of crystalline dew drops.

Aisling's eyes flickered to Ginny, warm and almost weighted with how entrancing they were, yet something in Ginny refused to be caught up in the spell. Her feet were anchored, her mind clear.

"Well, that's no fun," Aisling said, losing some of her musical tone as she shifted her gaze back to Malfoy. "How can we play with the human pet if you're protecting her so intently?"

Ginny and Malfoy exchanged a startled glance.

"Protecting her?" he echoed. "But I'm not doing any—"

He broke off and his silvery eyes widened, fixing on Ginny's face with sudden intensity. She remembered when he'd grabbed her wrist and how she'd felt grounded when their eyes had met; how all the allure of the fruit had simply disappeared because he was right there, steadying and familiar.

Aisling laughed in a chime of bells. "You did not realise? My king, how human you have become."

Malfoy looked a bit thrown for a moment before he straightened, chin lifting. "I don't care about any of that. If you are this so-called Lady of the Forest, you can send us back to London. That's the only reason I'm here. I want to leave now."

"Haven't you had enough of this charade?" She gestured to their surroundings. "Surely you hear it? The land calls to you. It tells you that you belong here."

"I know where my home is and it isn't this place."

Her lips pursed a fraction but then softened into a smile. "I see. You are confused. Scared. It is understandable. The human world has tainted your spirit. It has made you forget who you are."

Malfoy balled his hands into fists. "Don't speak as if you know everything about me."

"But I do. I know that the face you wear is a lie, as is the name you have taken upon yourself. I know you sense it as well."

Ginny glanced at him in concern, remembering the fear he had confided to her during their trek.

" _If I am the Faerie King, then what—who even is Draco Malfoy? My parents, my home. How does everything fit together?"_

Now he had his answer. It didn't fit together. Not at all.

His breathing quickened and his jaw tightened, but he only lowered his face so that strands of his silvery-blond hair fell forward to hide his expression. Ginny wished she knew what to say to make this better. It was obvious he had been shaken.

"Come, my king," Lady Aisling said, her voice soft and persuasive. "It is futile to deny the truth. You are fae. You were born to rule this land. It is time you end this game of playing human and resume your rightful place on the throne."

There was a moment of silence as everyone stared at the blond, waiting for his response. Even Mab watched with cat-like interest. Malfoy, for his part, just stood with his head bowed and his hands clenched.

"Playing human," he said quietly. "Is that what you call it?"

"What else can it be called?"

He clenched his hands tighter, making his knuckles flare white. "I guess to you it doesn't make sense. You say I'm fae, that I'm your king and need to stay here. But none of that means anything to me. My parents, my home, my memories of being Draco Malfoy. That's what's real to me." He raised his head to meet her gaze. "You can't tell me it's all a lie. I won't accept it."

"But it is," she said simply. "Your parents were fae and passed on long ago. You—"

"You're lying! I'm not—I've always been—"

"The fae cannot lie."

Ginny couldn't help snorting. "Are you sure Malfoy really is fae then? Because there's no way he's never told a lie in his life."

Everyone stared at her.

"What?" she said with a shrug. "I went to school with this idiot. I doubt he's got an honest bone in his body." She nudged his ribs. "Right, Malfoy?"

At any other time, he would have acknowledged her teasing with a roll of his eyes or a snarky rejoinder. Instead, he just looked at her as if she'd kicked him when he was already down.

"Are you actually telling me you can't lie?" she demanded.

"The most I can do is omit things or twist the truth a bit," he admitted, glancing away. "I always figured I was just terrible at lying and worked with what I had."

"Know that feeling," Wankero muttered, then was quickly shushed with an elbow to his gut.

Ginny face-palmed.

"You see," Aisling said, stepping closer to the blond. "You know what I speak is the truth. You are not human. You never were."

His hair once more fell down like a silvery veil to hide his expression. It was a sobering sight. "Then why did I grow up in that world? Why are my memories all of there? None of this makes any sense."

"Because you were bored."

He looked up with heartbreaking confusion. "What?"

"Or perhaps curious is a better word," Aisling allowed. "You were always fascinated by the tales of the human world. You wanted to know what it was like to live as one of them." She shook her head. "A foolish, dangerous venture. Just look at what it has done to you."

"That doesn't—I still don't understand. How did—"

"There was a human child who got lost in our realm," she explained. "He was very ill. Dying. You saw your opportunity and took it."

Malfoy's cheeks drained of all colour. "What?"

"You took his face, his name. You made his life your own."

"That can't be true." The blond looked like he was going to be sick.

"Such a practice is not so uncommon. Nevertheless, you are the Faerie King. You should not have done so."

He visibly swallowed and stared at his hands. They trembled.

"Malfoy—" Ginny reached for him but was blocked by Aisling. The autumn-haired fae was just there all of a sudden, giving her no choice but to step back or have an awkward collision.

What the heck? Had she just got comfort-giving-blocked? Was that even a thing?

Aisling took his chin in her grasp and forced him to meet her eyes. "For years I have waited for your return," she said softly. "I have guarded your throne and this realm in your absence." Her fingers brushed his cheek, and the sight made something tart and unpleasant curdle in Ginny's belly. The touch was a little too intimate. "My king, Finbar—"

"Finbar?" Ginny echoed with a scrunch of her nose.

Aisling ignored her. Those moss-green eyes were only for him. "That is your name. Finbar." She touched his silvery-blond hair. "Even this human form cannot deny who you are, my fair-haired king."

The tart, unpleasant thing in Ginny's belly was like a big lump now. It weighed her down and filled her with an urge to shove the fae woman out of the way or maybe just make juvenile gagging motions. What was with all this "my king" rubbish anyway? All the other fae folk had called him Faerie King or Your Majesty. None of this " _my"_ nonsense.

Her heart suddenly stuttered in its beat. Wait a minute, in the stories the title of Lady of the Forest was often synonymous with Faerie Queen. Ginny's eyes bugged wide as she stared at the woman putting her caressing fae-paws all over Malfoy, even while cajoling him in that intimate tone. No bloody way.

"Oi, Wank," Ginny whispered, stepping back to join the gnomes. "The Lady of the Forest isn't the Faerie King's wife, right?"

"Eh, the Lady? Nah, she—"

Ginny exhaled a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"—be his betrothed."

It was like nails on a chalkboard.

"What?" Ginny exclaimed. "They're engaged?"

Everyone stared at her. Oops. That had been too loud. Still, it was hard not to be surprised. What a homecoming for Malfoy. He'd got a kingdom he hadn't known about dumped on his lap and a fiancée to go with it. Then a tiny snort escaped her as she realised what else that meant.

"That's actually got to suck," she muttered. "First he ditches her for the human world and then he forgets all about her. No wonder she's a bit pissy."

Aisling's ancient gaze came to rest upon her. "You talk too much, human."

Suddenly, Ginny's mouth was sealed as if with invisible threads. Her heart fluttered sickeningly in her chest and she tried to force her lips open, but nothing budged.

"Aisling."

Both women looked at Malfoy. It was the first time he'd said the fae's name and also the first time his voice had taken on a hint of amusement since they'd entered the courtyard. The tart, unpleasant thing in Ginny's belly turned sour—at least until he brushed past his so-called fiancée and placed his hand on her own shoulder.

"I know it's tempting sometimes," he said, "but you don't need to shut Weasley up like that."

Without warning, he tilted Ginny's face to his and brushed his thumb over her lips. Heat flooded her cheeks and her eyes widened as she looked up into his. She spluttered something super intelligible like, "W-what—why are you—you just can't—"

"You're welcome," Malfoy said, releasing her.

She blinked, realising he had removed the curse Aisling had put on her. "Oh. Erm, thanks."

Aisling raised her eyebrows. She almost looked confused. "Hearing the human pet's voice is that important to you?"

"I'm not a pet!"

"But she is so noisy," Aisling continued as if Ginny had not spoken. "If I were you, I'd just keep her mute."

"Weasley isn't my pet."

"That's right," Nobkin said. "She be his servant."

"I am not!" Ginny snapped. "For the last time, I'm not a pet or a servant!"

Aisling's eyes narrowed a fraction. "Then who are you to him?"

The question was different coming from the Lady of the Forest. Suddenly, Ginny was conscious of her homely, flannel pyjamas and every blemish to her appearance—of every freckle, of how her teeth were a little crooked, of the fact her hair was too orange and her curves too lacking. She felt small, inferior, ugly.

She felt unbearably human.

Who was she to the king of the faeries? The fact was that she was nothing. It was only Draco Malfoy who had any connection to her. Malfoy was the one who got drunk and sprawled all on her like a snuggly cat, murmuring affectionate things disguised as insults. Malfoy was the one who teased her for her fashion sense, but had also told Pansy Parkinson to shut up for doing the same. Malfoy pestered her at ungodly hours and whined like a brat when he didn't get his way; he was a bastard and sometimes he just pissed her off so, so much, but—

But Malfoy was the Faerie King. His name wasn't even Malfoy. He had a fiancée and was basically immortal compared to her and her own teeny-tiny, human existence.

Who was she to him?

"She's my friend," Malfoy said simply.

Ginny's eyes widened. "What?"

His mouth curled up at one corner. "You want to contest that? I can demote you back to—"

"Oh, shut up." She hit him lightly on the chest, though what she really wanted was to pull him into a big hug. He'd called her his friend. Not just his neighbour or a woman he'd known in the human world, but a friend.

It made her stupidly happy.

"Your friend," Aisling said, glancing between them. "I see."

"And as my friend, that means she's under my protection," he continued, straightening his back to take on a more commanding air. "No more curses, no enchantments."

"Of course," Aisling responded. "You have my word that she will be returned safely to the human world. I can even return her now if you wish."

It was like a balloon popped in Ginny's chest. Right. She was the one who did not belong here, and there was also the issue of what Malfoy planned to do. He hadn't yet confirmed if he would stay with the fae. Aisling, the gnomes and the fairies seemed to be wondering the same judging by the way they were all looking at him. When asked, he frowned at his hands and said he needed some time to think about it.

Aisling stared at him for a long moment. "Very well. I understand this has been a lot for you to take in, though I hope you will join us tonight for the celebrations. There are many who will wish to see you."

Malfoy's shoulders hunched a bit. Aisling seemed to understand that pressing him further would not achieve anything. She gestured for the gnomes and fairies to follow and they began to all head back down the steps. A fairy prodded Ginny in the arm to make her leave as well, but she had barely taken a step before there was a tug on the back of her pyjama shirt.

"Stay," Malfoy mumbled.

Ginny turned to face him, even as the last of the gnomes and fairies passed out of view. He seemed to be staring at a random broomstick on her pyjamas. Soon, they were the only ones in the courtyard.

"Thank you," he said after a few beats of silence.

The urge to tease him for actually showing gratitude to her passed as quickly as it had come. This wasn't the time. "You're welcome, I guess, though I don't really know why you're thanking me. I don't feel like I did anything."

"I just … it just felt like everything was crumbling around me. I didn't know what to think, I didn't know what to do, but then you opened your big mouth and Aisling cursed you and"—his gaze met hers, surprisingly soft—"it was like being home again. All of a sudden I felt more like myself. More grounded."

"Great." Her tone was flat. "Glad that getting cursed could be of so much cheer to you, because you know that wasn't alarming at all or—"

He breathed out a laugh and tugged her closer by her arm. "Idiot. I'm saying I'm glad you're here with me." He bumped his forehead against hers like an affectionate cat. "You're the most real thing to me in this world. Right now, I even like the fact you're wearing those hideous pyjamas."

Her face was burning. Oh Merlin, it was the ugly, splotchy red, wasn't it? Why did he always catch her off guard like this? Why couldn't she blush like a normal person? She was sure that antler-headed Aisling didn't blush like a splotchy tomato.

Ginny decided to press her face into his chest. Just to hide her blush, of course. Not because she had pulled him into a big, squishy hug.

"What will you do?" she asked after a moment.

"I don't know."

A pause.

"I don't have to call you Finbar now, do I?"

"Merlin no. Malfoy is fine. Or Draco, I guess."

She snuggled closer. His arms came to rest loosely around her waist. It would have been a nice moment if she wasn't worrying about whether this might be their last time together. He was still fae. He was still a king. That was something even he couldn't deny now.

"You smell nice," he murmured, almost inaudible.

"You smell like vomit."

Malfoy held her tighter. She didn't pull away.


	4. Chapter 4

Apologies for the wait. I added a few scenes to this chapter and it took me a while to get them finished.

* * *

Ginny leaned on the railing and peered down at the shimmering paths entwined with flowers and crystals that wound around the trunk. It really was a beautiful place. There was nothing in the human world that could compare, not even with the assistance of magic. This was beyond what a witch or wizard could do, beyond anything that she could have imagined as a child with all her mother's stories.

"And Malfoy is the king of all this," she murmured.

Mab meowed from near her feet.

She bent to scratch the cat behind the ears. "You're getting hungry, huh? Me too, but I don't think either of us should be eating fae food."

Not unless they wanted to be stuck in the Faerie Kingdom forever. Everything in this land was a temptation and a trap. It was designed to enchant and never let go.

Soft footsteps caught her attention. "Weasley."

She glanced up and her jaw dropped. The vomit-stained clothes had been replaced with a robe that looked as if it had been sewn out of stars and moonlight. His hair trailed down his back in silvery-blond, longer than she'd ever seen it. Even his skin seemed to glow, though it was subtler than the light that emanated from the fairies fluttering near him. She found it hard to gaze upon his face. His eyes, his mouth, the curve of his cheekbones—never had the word spellbinding seemed so fitting. Looking at him made her feel like her heart might slip away from her.

But this was not the Draco Malfoy she knew.

Her stomach clenched and she straightened to her full height. "Looks like you did a bit more than change your clothes," she managed to get out.

"It just happened." He stared at his faintly luminescent palm. "Something about being in this place."

Ginny wanted to tease him for being all glowy, knowing it would ground them back in the familiar, but the words wouldn't come out. They just wouldn't. This man before her was a stranger. He looked unearthly, a star too distant for her to tease, touch or even understand.

He looked like the Faerie King.

"It feels more real," she said quietly. "Seeing you like this."

"Yeah." His tone sounded hollow.

"And your memories? Did they come back?"

He shook his head.

"Oh."

There was a long silence.

He moved to stand next to her, resting his hands on the railing and gazing down at the view just as she had done earlier. A scent of something clean and woodsy teased her senses—a scent she realised she had always associated with him, though it was much stronger now. Perhaps because his human disguise had come undone.

"Aisling told me about a fruit that grows here which can permanently erase memories," he confided. "She said it might be easier that way."

"What do you mean?"

He leaned forward more, brushing his finger against an unopened bud peeping up through the latticed wood. It unfurled into a white flower, perfect and beautiful like everything else in this world. "Even if I'm fae, even if I have all this power, I don't know how to be Finbar the Faerie King. The things I know and care about are all from the human world."

Ginny's breath caught in her throat. "You mean she told you to forget it all?"

He gave an odd shrug, more of a twitch. "It's what made it possible for me to be Draco Malfoy. I lost my memories of this place."

"But … but to just forget everything would be—"

"It's not like I want to." He exhaled and lowered his head. "But maybe she's right. Maybe it's for the best."

"How can you say that?"

"Look at me." He turned to her and she was struck once again with how ethereal and lovely he had become. "I'm not human, Weasley. I just stole some dying kid's life. If I go back, I'll be living a lie. How will I even look my pa—Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy in the face?"

Something cold and weighty settled in her stomach. "So you'd stay here? Just forget it all?"

He curled his fingers into his palms, dropping his gaze to the railing. "What choice do I have?"

"Of course you have a choice."

"Do I? Do I really?"

He looked so lost, so frustrated and uncertain. The expression was familiar. It let her see beyond the unearthliness to a face she had known since she was eleven years old: the mouth that could curl into a smirk or droop into a bratty pout; the silvery-grey eyes that were sometimes cold, often mocking, though she always liked them best when they were full of silent laughter. Traces of the man she knew were everywhere. That gave her confidence.

"Where's this coming from all of a sudden?" she asked. "Before, it seemed like you wanted to come back with me."

"I did."

"Then why—"

"Because everything's changed! Can't you see that? It doesn't matter if I want to go back! It doesn't matter how I feel or if I don't remember anything about being the Faerie King, because that's who I am! The bloody trees talk to me! Even the land itself talks to me! This is where I belong!"

He made a frustrated sound and tried to stomp away, but she was faster and pulled him into a hug from behind, wrapping her arms around his middle. He stilled immediately.

"Maybe that's true," she murmured, pressing her cheek against his back. His long hair tickled her skin. "You are fae and you are the Faerie King, but you said it yourself, right? It's the human world that feels more real to you and holds all the things you care about. That life is yours as well."

"Except it's not."

"It _is_." She held him tighter. "Doesn't matter if you glow or got a new hairdo—heck, you can even sprout wings if you like—but to me you'll always be Draco Malfoy. I _know_ you. We went to school together. We've lived next door to each other for three years." Her voice softened. "You're my friend. You belong in my world too."

 _I don't want you to forget me._

She felt his chest rise and fall in a quick breath. One of his hands came to rest over hers. "Weasley, I—"

There was a loud cough.

The two sprang apart as if zapped with a stinging hex. She spun around to find Cressinda raising her eyebrows at them. Nobkin was also there and picked at his teeth with a grubby fingernail. Even Mab was watching with judging cat eyes.

"Ye be looking cosy," Nobkin observed.

Ginny's face flooded with heat. "We're friends! That's what friends do, you know? Give hugs and comfort each other."

"Oh, aye. If ye say so."

Malfoy pressed his hand to his face, though a faint dusting of pink peeked out from where his palm and fingers didn't cover. Was he actually blushing? The sight was enough to distract her from her own embarrassment.

"What do you two even want?" he asked.

"We was hoping Ye Majesty'd come look at the trees in the northern part of the forest. They be starting to show a sickness."

"What?" Ginny exclaimed. "But how? This place seems so perfect. I can't imagine anything here getting sick."

"Magic is what keeps the land protected," Cressinda explained. "Lady Aisling has tried her best while Your Majesty has been absent, but …"

"She's not the Faerie King," he finished. "I get it."

"Aye."

Ginny glanced at Malfoy. There were tiny creases on his brow. Her stomach clenched again and even her chest seemed to constrict.

"Guess I'd better look," he sighed.

Her hand shot out and latched around his wrist. He raised his eyebrow in question, but even she could only stare in confusion at the way she held onto him. It wasn't like she had thought to do it. Her body had just acted.

"Sorry," she mumbled, releasing him. "I, erm, thought I saw a bug."

His eyebrows tried to disappear off his forehead. "Right."

It was hard not to wince. Maybe he wasn't the only one who struggled with lying. Even Nobkin was snickering behind one of his dirt-encrusted hands.

Cressinda cleared her throat. "Your Majesty, the trees?"

"Right," he said again. "Trees."

There was an awkward moment where he and Ginny just stared at each other. Perhaps he was also conscious of the unspoken declaration that she was not welcome on this tree-healing trip. It certainly felt like Nobkin and Cressinda were trying to hint her off. Then Malfoy surprised her by flashing a tiny smile of mischief.

"Wanna come with?" he asked.

She bit her lip so she wouldn't laugh. "Pretty sure your gnome and fairy bodyguards will have something to say about that."

"So? I'm the Faerie King. Pretty sure that means they have to listen to me."

"You live to piss people off, don't you?"

His smile widened a fraction before it cracked and was replaced with a frown. He tugged ever so gently on her sleeve, his gaze intense. "Come."

There was no please, but she still felt the weight of his plea in that single word. It made her remember all the things he'd confessed after they'd met Aisling: how he'd told her that he was glad she was with him, how being with her made him feel more like himself. More grounded.

Her cheeks warmed and she averted her head. Geez. This guy never played fair. She had a right mind to call him a clingy bastard and tell him to go look after his bloody trees on his own; he had admitted that he'd contemplated forgetting her and the human world, after all. That was not okay. He couldn't just drop spell bombs like that after giving her nice hugs and calling her his friend, even saying she could call him Draco if she wanted. Then again, maybe his clinginess had rubbed off on her or something because she had to admit that she didn't want to be separated from him either. Wasn't that why she'd grabbed his wrist like an idiot?

"Fine," she said.

The grip on her sleeve relaxed, as did Malfoy's frown. Together, they headed down the trunk with Mab at their heels, black tail sticking upright like a little flag. Cressinda and Nobkin were back to their usual bickering.

"Merlin, just shut up the both of you and take us to the bloody trees!" Malfoy snapped.

Ginny's mouth twitched. For all his change in appearance, he really was still the same bad-tempered git.

 **oOo**

The trees did not look well. The leaves were falling off and there was discolouration on the trunks and branches. It was like tufts of bald patches had marred the forest. Malfoy frowned as the trees swayed around him.

"What are they saying?" Ginny asked.

"Imagine being in a hospital full of children telling you their ailments. It's exactly like that." He sighed and looked to Cressinda and Nobkin. "How am I supposed to help them?"

"Use your magic," Cressinda said. "You are the Faerie King. You can heal them."

Malfoy's frown deepened. He stepped up to the closest tree and placed his hand on the trunk. For a moment nothing happened. Then pearly light glowed around his hand like a halo of starlight, getting brighter and brighter. When the light was gone, so was the discolouration on the tree. Fresh leaves sprouted forth in green shoots bursting with colour. The tree swayed happily as if it was thanking him.

Ginny watched as Malfoy did the same for all the other trees. It took some time, especially since the forest was chatty and kept distracting him. Even so, with each tree that Malfoy healed, a strange hollowness formed in the pit of her stomach.

" _It doesn't matter how I feel … The bloody trees talk to me! Even the land itself talks to me! This is where I belong!"_

"Aye, the Faerie King's magic sure be something," Nobkin said. "It's been a long time since we seen anything like that."

Cressinda smiled. "Thank you, Your Majesty. The forest will surely thrive with you here now."

Malfoy lowered his gaze. "Right."

Ginny bit her lip. His eyes met hers after a moment, torn and tired. Neither of them said a word.

 **oOo**

That night all of the fae gathered in the glade. Food of all kinds weighed the banquet tables, delicious and tempting like a lure to reel her in. Aisling and Malfoy sat upon the thrones entwined with honeysuckle. They looked like they belonged there. They looked like they belonged with each other: both beautiful beyond imagining, a king and a future queen.

Ginny stood off to the side in her flannel pyjamas. The other fae folk danced around her—the enticing and odd, the small and the large. The music was like the sweet tones of a siren and the wistful dreams of childhood weaving into her blood and making her heart hum. Ever since her mum had started telling her stories of the Faerie Kingdom, she had imagined taking part in one of these revels, but for all the magic and enchantment of the moment, it all just felt off. Or maybe it was that she felt off.

She was the only human in this glade. She was the only outsider.

Her eyes sought Malfoy's. Aisling was leaning towards him and saying something in his ear. His expression remained like marble, barely twitching. Something tightened in Ginny's chest. She knew that stony expression. It was the one he wore when he was unhappy but didn't want to show it on his face. A shield to hide behind.

" _Come."_

That single word, that single plea. He'd said it with such sincerity. And she had failed him. She had stayed silent after watching him heal the trees when she should have been honest.

She had been a coward.

Ginny let out a breath. She crossed to where he sat on the throne, brushing past hobgoblins and nymphs. Maybe she didn't belong in this kingdom, maybe he was born to rule it, but she _knew him_. She also knew that right now he was miserable. There was no way she was going to stay sulking off to the side.

"Malfoy," she greeted.

He sat up straighter and some of the rigidity around his mouth relaxed. "Weasley."

She held out her hand. "Dance with me."

Aisling's eyebrows shot up. "You dare demand the king of the fae to—"

But Malfoy was already standing. He took Ginny's hand and walked with her towards the middle of the glade, finding a space for them amidst the twirling couples. His touch was cool like a breath of air, a whisper of otherness, but she did not shy off. Not this time. She held his hand boldly, skin brushing against the little callouses on his fingers that she knew were from Quidditch and writing too many essays with a quill. They were callouses just like her own.

"I didn't think you'd agree so easily," she said, resting her hand on his shoulder.

"I didn't think you'd ask."

Their eyes met as he pulled her a fraction closer by her waist and guided her into the steps, following the rhythm of the enchanting blend of instruments and singing. He had always been graceful, but she had grown into her body as well since her awkward younger days. It wasn't difficult to follow his lead, fluid like silk on the wind.

"And here I thought I was going to have to suffer you stepping on my toes the whole time," he murmured. "Since when do Weasleys learn to dance?"

She whacked his chest lightly. "Git."

"Hey, I was giving you a compliment."

"That was a Malfoy compliment."

His eyebrow quirked.

"You wrap it in an insult, and you know it."

His mouth curved up at the corners, but instead of saying anything, he spun her out and then pulled her back in, their bodies now a bit closer than before. His woodsy, fresh scent teased her senses. It was another reminder of otherness, of his fae nature. She found that she didn't care. Instead, she threaded their fingers and returned his smile. It had been a long time since either of them had insulted each other's family with any real vehemence. His words and his presence only served to ground her more and more in the familiar. In the touchable.

They continued to dance to the music, weaving their own little world for themselves with each step. Her breath caught when her feet left the ground. They were floating, rising up to meet the glowing fairies that twirled through the air like fireflies.

"No wings?" she teased.

He shrugged. "I don't even know how I'm doing this."

Like the way his human disguise had come undone or how he'd placed a protection spell on her with a simple look. Like the way he could speak to trees and heal the forest's ailments. This world made his magic come alive. It made the fae in him come alive.

"Well, you know I like flying," she said. "Just don't let us fall. I don't really feel like going splat on all those pretty flowers. Would kind of ruin the festivities, you know."

He tugged her closer so that his arm was wrapped fully around her. "I won't."

She leaned into him, resting her cheek against his chest. They slowed so that they were swaying more than dancing. A part of her knew they had to make an odd pair: him looking like something from a dream, a star descended from heaven and cloaked in silver, while there she was with her bright orange hair and flannel Quidditch pyjamas. It was laughable that they should even be dancing together—the Faerie King and a human witch, the immortal and the mortal—but Ginny didn't want to stop. She didn't want to let him go.

"Come back with me," she said softly.

He stilled.

"We both know you don't want to be here. So leave. Come with me."

His eyes lowered and then she began to lower with him as well, drifting towards the ground like the inevitable descent of a leaf in autumn. "Let's say I did," he said just as quietly. "Let's say I go back with you. What do you think would happen to this place?"

She bit her lip. "I don't know."

No point lying and saying everything would be fine. He wasn't an idiot. They'd both seen the rot and sickness that had got into the trees.

Her feet touched the ground. They stood still for a moment and just stared at each other as couples danced around them. Fur brushed against her ankles—Mab, judging from that familiar bat of a tail—but even then Ginny couldn't look away. It felt like breaking eye contact would give him an excuse to stay in the Faerie Kingdom.

"Listen," she said, "I—"

"Human girl."

She twitched. It was with great reluctance that she turned to confront Aisling, who had come down from the throne to stand before them. "I do have a name, you know. It's Ginny."

Aisling didn't bat an eyelash. "Walk with me a moment."

"Actually, I—"

"I'd appreciate if you'd do this for me."

Ginny closed her mouth. The look in Aisling's eyes suggested this wasn't up for debate. Ugh. Just who did this antler-headed fae think she was?

Oh, right. The Lady of the Forest and Malfoy's fiancée.

Ginny resisted the urge to pull a sour face. The whole betrothal thing still bugged her. "Alright, if you really want to go for a walk, let's walk."

Malfoy looked as if he wanted to protest, but perhaps he was also conscious of the fact that doing so would just make him seem like the worst kind of man. One did not insist on having another woman's company while in front of one's fiancée, even if one literally had no memory of being betrothed to her.

"Later then," Ginny said, giving him a half-hearted wave.

"Yeah."

She encouraged Mab to follow her, but the cat slinked around Malfoy's ankles and appeared quite content to stay with him. He scrunched his nose.

"This little beast of yours is awful," he declared. "The worst kind of sycophant. She's been throwing insults at me all day and only now is she deciding to play nice since she thinks I'm the most likely to give her proper food."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Doesn't even surprise me. Look after her for me, would you?"

He didn't get a chance to respond, as Aisling was quick to take Ginny's arm and lead her away. When she glanced over her shoulder to get another glimpse of him, he'd been blocked by some tall creature that looked as if it had been shaped from rock.

Resigned, Ginny followed Aisling along a few paths until they came to a fountain. There was a statue of a nymph holding an urn in the centre, which allowed fresh water to pour forth. Shifting faces peered up at her from the surface, but they quickly dissipated when she caught their gaze.

"Here will do," Aisling said.

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "That was a short walk."

"I do not wish to waste time."

Something twisted in Ginny's stomach. She had an idea where this conversation was going.

"Your presence only troubles Finbar," Aisling said, meeting her gaze coolly. "I cannot let you confuse him any longer. He belongs in this world with his own kind."

"He can live wherever he wants. You don't have the right to tell him where he belongs."

"Finbar is the king of the fae. Would you have him turn his back on his own kin? On a land that needs him?"

Ginny swallowed.

"You are being selfish, human. Understand that whatever feelings you have are nothing compared to the needs of a kingdom."

Ginny's hands balled into fists and she lowered her head. "What about his feelings?" she asked quietly. "He already left once. Doesn't that say something?"

"I cannot lie. Finbar was a restless king and was forever luring humans here so he could learn about the other world. It was inevitable he would try something. Still, as the future Faerie Queen, I cannot let him make the same mistake." A pause. "Perhaps it is a blessing he lost his memories. At least now he can be moulded."

Ginny's head snapped up. "Moulded?"

Aisling raised her eyebrows. "What use is a Faerie King who wants to be human? Finbar was a fool. I will shape him into a true king."

Disgust curdled in Ginny's stomach. "What kind of fiancée says things like that? It's no wonder he ditched you back then. You don't love him at all, do you? It doesn't sound like you even care about him."

"We have been betrothed since birth. I care for him enough and accept he will be my husband, but I will not allow him to ruin this kingdom with his own selfishness." She shook her head in calm disappointment. "A Faerie King should know better."

Ginny gritted her teeth. "And how do you plan to do this _moulding_?"

"In whatever way is necessary. Now, he is ignorant of the way this land works and the full extent of his powers." Her moss-green eyes were cold despite the warmth of the colour. "Finbar will learn responsibility even if it means I must use the forest against him."

The curdling disgust turned into knots. "It was you, wasn't it? You made the trees sick."

A hint of slyness crept into the fae's expression. "Picked up on that, did you?"

"It didn't make sense. I remember the stories. Even if the trees did get sick, you should have been able to heal them yourself. You're the Lady of the Forest."

Aisling almost looked impressed. "Perhaps you are not as obtuse as I thought, human girl."

Ginny narrowed her eyes. "I won't let you trick him like this!"

"I'm afraid you don't have a choice. You are no longer welcome here."

She opened her mouth to retort, but Aisling waved her hand and then Ginny was tumbling through the hole that opened up under her feet. Gone was the fountain, gone were the starry lights. She fell through a tunnel of mist before hitting something cold and solid. It was like a slap to her body. A groan escaped her, but it quickly turned into a gasp.

Snow. There was snow all around her, dusting like white frosting on a familiar outdoor chair and table. She sat up in a rush and her heart tried to leap into her throat. Before her was the open glass door that led into Malfoy's apartment. Everything inside was just as it had been left, cupboards ajar from when the gnomes had been rummaging.

"No," she whispered.

She was back, but she was also alone. No Malfoy. No Mab. No way to return.


	5. Chapter 5

"Ten months," Ginny grumbled, stumbling her way up the stairs. "That bastard has been gone ten months. And does he bother to try get in contact with me? Nooooooooo."

And he stole her cat. The bastard.

She tripped on the final step and almost fell flat on her face. "Bloody hell," she groaned, struggling to right her balance. Her eyes prickled. This was where he had used to trip all the time when he'd come home drunk. She'd always hear him cursing and fumbling for his wand, and then she'd come out to check on him and, and—

Ginny sniffed. A few tears slipped loose. Ugh. Now she was crying over him. That bastard.

She glanced at the door to the right of her own apartment. Number 405. After that first night of finding herself back in the human world, she'd checked every day to see if he had come back with Mab. His apartment had remained empty. By the time the third month had rolled around, she'd avoided the door entirely.

Sniffing again, Ginny removed her wand from her pocket and opened his door. Another flick of her wand and a muttered " _Lumos_ " had the lights turn on. No gnomes greeted her vision this time. No sight of the bastard or Mab either.

"What did I expect?" she muttered.

She sat down on the middle of the floor and pulled her legs up to her chest. The whole apartment felt like some weird shrine or tomb. All of his belongings were still there and untouched—the rent still got paid, so the landlady hadn't cared—but the place didn't feel lived in anymore. That was the worst part. He had always been so _present_. The bastard hadn't known how to be quiet. Now the apartment was dead silent except for the sound of her breathing and pathetic little sniffs.

"Bastard," she said vehemently under her breath.

It was his fault she felt so useless, not to mention that her friends and family now thought she was crazy. Granted, she had once gone gnome hunting at the Burrow and had been found pulling the little potato creatures up by their legs while calling for Wank and Nob very loudly. And she had tried to put a notice in the _Daily Prophet_ to request that people alert her if they found a fairy ring of mushrooms—in the stories, they were supposed to act as portals to the Faerie Kingdom—but the newspaper had rejected her notice. She'd ended up getting the _Quibbler_ to publish it instead. A few people had even wrote back with sightings, but either the stories had lied or the Faerie Kingdom just didn't want to let her back in, as Ginny had stayed frustratingly trapped in her own world.

Things had also got really awkward when the Aurors got involved. There had been interviews, accusations and a lot of disbelief. Luckily, Narcissa Malfoy had stepped in before the situation got any messier and called the search off, ordering them to leave Ginny alone. When Ginny had asked why Narcissa had done that—for even she could admit it sounded crazy to confess that gnomes had spirited him away—Narcissa had only smiled a little sadly.

"I'm a mother. Of course I noticed the change."

She'd left after that, but Ginny had never forgotten the conversation. It sounded like Narcissa had always known the son to whom she'd given birth had been replaced with a fae. Ginny was also sure the friend-abandoning faerie bastard would have been reassured had he been able to hear the words for himself, but of course he hadn't.

Because the bastard had not come back.

It had been ten bloody months. That was almost a year. Didn't he understand what this was doing to the people who cared about him? To her? She couldn't concentrate at training, made stupid mistakes during Quidditch matches, and all in all was acting like some lovesick sop gone into a decline. Heck, she was sitting on his floor more than a little drunk right now and crying. That was a whole new level of low.

"Ugh, screw this," she groaned.

She flopped onto her back, arms and legs imitating a starfish as she stared up at the ceiling. The fact was that she'd been worried sick ever since they'd been separated. He'd looked so vulnerable and lost back then, and her stomach turned to knots every time she thought about Aisling wanting to mould him into being the perfect Faerie King.

Had he ever realised the truth? Had he just decided he didn't care anymore and wanted to stay with the fae? Worse, had he eaten the fruit and forgotten all about her?

More tears leaked down her face. She draped her arm over her eyes.

 _Thunk_.

Ginny ignored the sound coming from the balcony. How many times had she rushed out to check odd noises? How many times had she been disappointed?

 _Thunk. Crash._

It was probably a cat. Not Mab, of course. It was just some normal thing without a penchant for attempting murder.

"I know, I know. You don't need to bloody scratch me, you furry thing of hell!"

Merlin, was she actually going crazy now? That had almost sounded like him.

There was a slight jiggling and then the distinct sound of a door sliding open. She raised her arm from her eyes and tilted her head back. Fancy leather shoes peeped out from the hem of black robes. Huh? Those shoes looked awful familiar. Brow creasing, she tilted her head back more to look up at the owner of the obnoxiously fancy shoes. An upside-down Malfoy stared back at her with his nose scrunched. His hair was still long, though he looked very human now—no glowing or heightened good looks—and there were a few scratches on his cheek and hands. Mab poked her head out from behind his legs.

"The hell?" he said. "Why are you on my floor?"

Ginny stared at him for a good three seconds before she was suddenly on her feet and using her wand to levitate things at him: a notepad that had been sitting on the coffee table, quills, cushions—anything that was within eyesight. He yelped and cursed, trying to twist and duck to protect himself. Mab hissed and retreated to the kitchen in a shot of black.

"Oi, stop it!" he yelled. "I said _stop_!" A heavy book almost smacked him in the crotch. Still with his arms curled around his head, he glared at her in outrage. "Are you crazy? That could have seriously—oh shit!"

A few more heavy tomes were fired at him. Most of them sailed right past him except for the one he caught in his hands. He seemed to get some confidence then, as he began to duck and weave his way closer to her position, using the book and a cushion he'd picked up as shields.

"Piss off!" Ginny snapped, abandoning her magic so she could throw things at him with her hands. It was more satisfying, especially since his perfectly organised belongings were now getting scattered everywhere. OCD faerie git could suck it.

"Who're you telling to piss off? This is my apartment, you—for fuck's sake! Now you're just trying to destroy things, aren't you?"

Ginny paused to catch her breath. Flipping the coffee table had taken a lot out of her. Malfoy was now only an arm's length away and surrounded by the carnage of her emotions. The continued stillness reassured him enough into lowering the book.

"Had enough?" he asked.

She glowered at him for a long moment before her chin trembled. "Bastard!" she cried, then knocked the book and cushion out of his hands so she could pull him into a tight hug. His arms came around her in an instant.

"A normal person would have just said welcome back, you know," he murmured.

"You don't deserve a welcome." She burrowed even more against him, breathing in his scent. "I hate you and your stupid face."

"Uh-huh."

"I do!"

He rested his chin on her head. "It's good to see you too, Weasley."

It was like weights were falling away from her. She clutched him tighter, fresh tears prickling her eyes. How nice it was to hear him call her that. How _good_ it was to know he hadn't forgotten her.

"You stink of alcohol," he observed after a moment.

Of course he had to ruin the moment.

She pulled back to scowl at him. "Like you're one to talk! Who was the one who always had to look after your drunken arse?"

"I'm just saying it's not like you to walk around smelling like someone trying to become one with the firewhisky bottle. And you were lying on my floor. What was up with that?"

"Well, excuse me for having a rough time! I mean, I only had to put up with your antler-headed fiancée sending me back to this world with no warning, and then you just tralalaahed around in the Faerie Kingdom for _ten bloody months_ while I was left here on my own!" She gave a loud sniff. "But, sure, tell me I'm a mess! Tell me I'm an idiot for actually giving a damn about what happened to you, because Merlin knows I've felt like—"

"Wait, ten months?"

She closed her mouth, giving another big sniff. "What, did you lose all your fae calendars or something? That's how long you've been gone, you bastard!"

"But it's only been three days."

They both blinked at each other. She would have thought he was lying just to piss her off, except she knew that he couldn't lie. It had really only been three days for him.

Ginny groaned and pressed her hand to her forehead. "Of course. This used to happen in the stories sometimes."

"What?"

"Time runs differently in the Faerie Kingdom. People could leave and find that no time had passed at all, but then for others a hundred years had passed and everyone they'd known had died."

He paled. "Well, lucky it was only ten months then."

"No kidding."

There was an awkward pause as they both stared at each other. A hint of curiosity crept into his eyes.

"Were you really that upset?" he asked. "When you thought I wasn't coming back, I mean."

"Don't flatter yourself. I just missed Mab."

"No one can miss that cat. It's a thing of evil."

There was a meow from the kitchen.

"My point exactly, hell beast," he said, rolling his eyes. "And I can't believe you're already complaining about being hungry!"

Ginny's mouth twitched. "You really haven't changed at all, have you?" She tugged gently on his long hair, wrapping the silvery-blond strands around her fingers. "Well, except for this."

"It wouldn't go back," he grumbled. "Just stopping the bloody glowing took half a day."

A snort escaped her. "Yeah, that kind of would have been a giveaway. Humans don't tend to glow."

Something shifted in his expression. "It's still just a disguise, you know. All this. I can't change what I am."

His voice was soft and his gaze didn't quite meet hers. It was like he was expecting her to turn away in disgust at the reminder that he wasn't human. Idiot. He clearly didn't know her well. Or maybe this was just his way of asking for reassurance that it was okay for him to be here. Whatever. Still made him an idiot.

She cupped his cheek with her free hand and smiled up at him. "I'm pretty sure I've told you before that I don't care about all that. You are who you are." Her lips pursed. "But if you vanish on me again for another ten months, we're going to have a problem."

"Well, you can rest easy on that because I don't plan on going back to the Faerie Kingdom."

"Bet Aisling loved it when you told her that."

Malfoy smiled slightly. "Actually, she was the one who helped me get back here in the end."

"What? But she was so—" Ginny couldn't think of a suitable word to describe what she thought of Aisling and just ended up pulling a face "— _her_."

"Yeah, I know. I was pissed off when I found out she'd sickened the trees and tried to get everyone to trick me into staying. Lucky some water nymphs tipped me off."

"And then what?" Ginny released him and folded her arms across her chest. "She just decided to stop being an awful bitch when you confronted her?"

"Not exactly. But we did talk, _a lot_. I realised she cared for the land more than anything—enough to even use dark magic against the trees she loves. She thought she was doing the right thing."

"So she's a misguided bitch. Still makes her a bitch."

Amusement glinted in his eyes. "You really don't like her, do you?"

"Can you blame me? She cursed me and kept calling you ' _my king_ ' in that gross way and—"

He started laughing.

"What?"

"Nothing."

She poked him in the chest. "Tell me!"

"It doesn't matter," he said, still with traces of a smile. "Anyway, I'm not saying she's a nice person, but we at least were able to come to an agreement."

Ginny narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "What kind of agreement?"

"I abdicated from the throne." He shrugged. "I never wanted it anyway, but someone did need to lead the fae—that much wasn't a lie. The land is bound to the magic of the king or queen; it will always be more vulnerable when no one sits on the throne. So I made Aisling the Faerie Queen."

"You gave the throne to _her_?"

"She'd basically been acting as queen anyway. The fae look up to her and she does care for them. It was the best solution."

Ginny pulled another face. "If you say so. I still don't think she's trustworthy. That lady is a closet villainess waiting to happen."

"She just doesn't like humans because I abandoned the kingdom to become one."

Ginny turned her nose up at the statement. In her opinion, this didn't excuse Aisling at all. Then another thought occurred to her.

"Wait, what about your engagement?" she asked.

"Annulled." He shrugged again. "It's not like either of us wanted to get married. I couldn't even remember being with her."

"Then you're all free."

He raised his eyebrow.

"I mean from the Faerie Kingdom," she said in a rush, even as warmth spread all over her cheeks. "You know, because you're not the king anymore and you're not engaged to Antlers and—"

"Weasley."

She broke off and looked up at him, her face still hot. "What?"

"Can we just stop pissing around this for once?"

"Wh-wha—"

He stepped closer. "I tried to play it cool before, but the truth is even though it's only been three days for me, it felt like years." His hands clasped her face and he stared deep into her eyes. "I missed you. You're an absolute madcap and I don't know how you managed it, but all that time we were separated I was just thinking about getting back here to see you. I hated that you weren't with me."

Her eyes widened and her heart pounded faster and faster.

"Of course, I didn't expect to find you sprawled on my floor," he continued with a teasing little smile, "but you're here and I'm here, and enough has happened that I'll be damned if I don't be honest with you now."

Ginny swallowed. Her heartbeat thrummed in her ears. "Honest about what?"

"I'm saying that you're not just my neighbour or my friend. I like you. I want you in my life. I can't stand the thought of you being with anyone else." He brushed his thumb against her cheek. "Weasley," his voice softened to an intimate caress, " _Ginny_ , tell me I've read your heart correctly, because I don't know what to do when you're not at my side."

She let out a breath. "Oh."

His face scrunched in disbelief. "Really? I say all that and all you can say is 'oh' in that lack-lustre—"

"Calm down. You just took me off guard."

He released her and jutted his lower lip in that sulky way of his. Idiot was probably just annoyed she hadn't swooned at his speech. Her mouth twitched and she took his hand and placed it over her thundering heart.

"There," she said. "Feel that?"

"Well, I do feel—"

"Don't you dare say boobs!"

His eyes did that glinty thing. That idiot. Of course he would try to get his own petty revenge since she ruined his big confession.

"You are very immature," she informed him.

"Says the woman who flipped my coffee table over and threw things at me."

"Hey, I thought you'd left me! I thought you were happily married to Antlers or something, and then you just turned up and—"

"Nah, it's because you're drunk." He tapped her gently on the head. "You're a violent little nutcase when you're drunk, you know."

Now it was her turn to pout.

He sighed and pulled her back into his arms, smoothing his hand along her hair. "You'd better remember all this tomorrow," he murmured after a moment.

"Hey, I'm not that drunk."

"Sure smells like you are."

She rolled her eyes but stayed snuggled against him. For a long time they remained that way, neither making any effort to break the embrace.

"I'm really glad you came back," she whispered.

He placed a kiss on her hair and then rested his forehead against hers. "I'm glad you were waiting."

Mab meowed. Loudly.

"Let me guess," Ginny muttered. "She wants food?"

"Of course."

They both turned to look at the cat, who watched them with judging eyes as if to demand how they dared to snuggle in front of her while she was dying of starvation. The tiniest violins in the world were playing for that tragedy.

"I've got this," he said, pulling away from her. "Why don't you go sober up?"

She poked her tongue out at him, but also didn't argue. He was right that she was still pretty drunk. Besides, this was just their normal routine. They looked out for each other when the other was sick (or had just indulged a bit too much in the old Ogden's), and for him that sometimes included having to shut up the whines of her cat. It was bizarrely this moment more than anything else that assured he was finally back for good. He and Mab were both with her again and they weren't going anywhere. Even better, she no longer had to suppress her feelings for him.

"Hey, Draco."

He paused in rummaging through his pantry and glanced over his shoulder at her. "What?"

"Will you stay with me tonight?"

A faint dusting of colour touched his cheeks. "If that's what you want." His lips pursed. "But you need to get sober first. And take a shower as well. Seriously, you stink like booze."

"Yeah, yeah."

He went back to looking for tuna tins with Mab yowling at his heels. Ginny grinned as she listened to him grumble.

She wandered over and nudged him with her arm. "The tuna tins are on the second shelf."

"Oh, thanks."

He pulled a tin out, which only caused Mab to slink around his ankles and the meows to get more persistent. He called the cat a little sycophant, but there was no harshness in his voice. Ginny's smile widened and she leaned back against the bench, just watching him have a domestic moment with Mab.

It was kind of funny in a way. She'd used to have a huge crush on the Faerie King when she was a child—that perfect and lovely fae who was said to be like the embodiment of a dream. Never could she have imagined that the real Faerie King had been listening to his own stories and just wanted to be a human like her. Never could she have imagined that their lives and hearts would become so entwined. Not that she was complaining.

Draco Malfoy would never be that charming king from her mother's storybooks, but he was real. He was hers. She wouldn't change a thing about him.


End file.
